New UK line opens a year late
Donald Brooks was present for the long-awaited public opening of a new 2ft gauge line in Greater Manchester.
It is always good to welcome a new line to the ranks of UK narrow gauge railways, particularly when it has been a quarter of a century in the making, although the frustrations of 2020 meant that the opening of the Lancashire Mining Museum’s railway at Astley Green Colliery happened a year later than expected.
The creation of the line to 2020 was described in full in NGW146. Matters did not go well in early 2020, when weather that was wet even by the standards of Greater Manchester made infrastructure work almost impossible. Then Covid-19 struck and the entire site was mothballed. After a couple of months things began opening up again – volunteers returned in limited numbers, their first task to clear the vegetation that had taken over the closed complex.
On the railway the final touches were put to the outer terminus at Whitehead Lane and the area around the pithead station, now known as Trencherbone Platform after the main coal seam worked at Astley Green, was tidied and landscaped.
The last piece of the jigsaw was fulfilling the legal requirements of heritage railway operation. By early May 2021 the required infrastructure, operational and regulatory work had been signed off, paving the way for passenger operation at last.
Following trial running and a preview for the High Sheriff of Greater Manchester, an operating day was held to thank corporate and individual sponsors on Saturday 29th May. Trains were hauled by 4wDH ‘Newton’, Hunslet 8975 of 1979, in the presence of the family of Geoff Jones, who donated the loco to the museum and who died in 2020.
On Sunday 30th May, in perfect weather, the railway was officially opened by the Mayor of Wigan, Councillor Yvonne Klieve, herself a miner’s daughter. Public services for fare-paying passengers ran on Sunday and Monday of the Bank Holiday weekend, with four return trains each day between 13.00 and 15.45. The other passenger loco, 1962 Simplex ‘Sandy’, was displayed by the station.
Plans initially envisage a similar timetable, with operating dates at selected weekends advertised on the Red Rose Steam Society’s Facebook page, though the intention is to run trains half-hourly every weekend afternoon as soon as possible.
Admission to the museum site remains free, with a return train trip costing £3.00, no pre-booking required. Expansion and extension plans are still live, with steam operation certainly not ruled out.
With pithead gear dominating the site, this is a railway with a character all its own and one which, with the mining museum, grounds and tea room, offers a fascinating experience. A warm welcome is guaranteed for all visitors while new volunteers are received with open arms.